Great architecture, sweeping vistas make Prague a wonderland

The distinct landscape of Prague (Praha) is visible even as we cross the border from Austria into the Czech Republic by the Eurocity train. Intermittently, the vast tracts of yellow fields are a sight to behold, different photographic frames, different angles. A former eastern bloc country, a former communist country, and several more such thoughts play into our expectations and patent excitement builds as we draw into the station. Our first impression comes out mixed as we disembark into a slightly rusty station.

Our disappointment is short lived. We jump into a taxi and in our long-drawn search for our Crowne Plaza Hotel get a pretty good glimpse of what we are going to savour over the next couple of days. Plenty of landmarks are provided by strangers to assist in our search – next to the Strahov Monastery, close to the Prague Castle - everything seems to be strategically located next to landmarks. How culturally rich is this Praha ??!!

BRIDGE TOO FAR

Over the next few days we realize that our Prague pieda-terre , far from being located at a distance, is actually right on top of a hill with a more direct descent to the town below. The best views of Prague are from the Petrín Hill down to the Strahov Monastery and as we walk downhill from our hotel, we are astounded by the breathtakingly stunning view of the city, which is predominantly of brick-red roofs laced with exotic domes and spires any which way you look.

The fascinating aspect about Prague is the vivid structures. Definitely not a skyscraper city, Prague typically has straight buildings of 3-5 storeys and contiguous side walls. The front façade of the buildings, however, take on different shapes with charming sloping roofs and varied coloured and patterned walls, which are surprisingly uniform and appealing to the eye. Different blends and shades of orange, lemon, green, pink, brown, cream etc adorn the buildings. It's truly an amazing sight, watching one kaleidoscopic building after the other.

And walk, walk and walk it is in Prague, the only way that we actually get a feel of the town. The most exotic of walks is over the Charles Bridge, built during the reign of the eponymous King Charles IV in the early 15th century. It used to be the only bridge between the Prague Castle and the Old Town over the River Vltava. As Prague was known to have been an important trade connection between eastern and western Europe, the bridge provided an important link.

Lined with grand statues and propped up by towers, throughout the day the bridge is chockablock with people. Like the other milling tourists we are also fascinated by this old stone bridge and the view it provides on either side of the river. We find several hawkers selling souvenirs, painters selling miniatures of the city, musicians playing with abandon, all adding to the allure of the bridge.

A recommended guided bus tour takes us around the various parts of the city. Prague is spread out over nine hills (like Rome's seven!) and has different locales such as the Old Town, New Town, Jewish Quarter, Lesser Town etc.

CRYSTAL CLEAR

And there is plently to see, from magnificent museums and theatres to the opulent municipal house and even the Jewish cemetery. The more modern architectural gem to seem though is the 'Dancing Building' — a glass building with a curved and twisted 'waist' !

Wenceslas Square is the hub of New Town and is steeped in 20th century history , including the famous Prague uprising in 1945, the Soviet invasion in 1968, the Velvet Revolution in 1989 (which resulted in the end of communist rule in Czechoslovakia ) and more. Czechoslovakia was finally split into two countries, Czech Republic and Slovakia, in 1993. The square commemorates St Wenceslas, the patron saint of the Czech state with a mounted statue.

The Prague Castle is the most frequented place by tourists. We are quite impressed to hear that it is the largest castle complex in the world! It houses the chambers of previous kings and emperors and even the present Head of State of the Czech Republic, and has the St Vitus Cathedral in its courtyard. This 14th century Gothic style Roman Catholic Cathedral has amazingly exquisite architecture, and takes us back into another era.

The St Wenceslas Chapel within the cathedral holds the Bohemian crown jewels and given that there is typically a long queue to enter the cathedral it's best to assign half a day or more to visit the complex and the Royal Gardens there. We are happy that we manage to catch the change of guard ceremony which takes place hourly. Needless to say, that the view from the castle is yet again spectacular! The sight of the brick-red building is not easily forgotten.